Oregon Biennial Energy Report Reveals $19.5 Billion Spent on Energy Costs in 2022

The Oregon Department of Energy on Nov. 1 released its Biennial Energy Report providing the latest energy outlook for the state with statistics on energy consumption, production, and greenhouse gas emissions. The report revealed that Oregon spent a total of $19.5 billion on energy use in 2022, which is a 60 percent jump from 2020 levels. The report also showed that Oregon missed its 2020 greenhouse gas emissions target and will have to drastically decarbonize to meet its 2035 emissions target.

In 2022, Oregon’s total energy consumption amounted to nearly 867 trillion Btu. Transportation fuels accounted for the largest section, 36 percent or around 318 trillion Btu. Electricity accounted for the second largest consumer at 32.4 percent or 280 trillion Btu.

Oregon consumed 58.7 million megawatt hours of electricity in 2022 and produced 61.7 million megawatt hours. Oregon is the second largest producer of hydropower in the U.S. following Washington state, with 105 hydroelectric facilities producing 51 percent of Oregon’s electricity.

With bold clean energy targets, incorporating more renewables has been a priority to support the energy transition in the state. Although a significant portion of Oregon’s electricity comes from hydropower which is renewable, other renewable sources have also seen a lot of progress recently. Overall, the state has a total capacity of 11 gigawatts of renewable electricity generation under review, construction, and operation. Wind, solar, and geothermal are the biggest sources of renewable energy in the state.

Oregon’s 50 operating wind power sites have a total capacity of 3,981 MW, with an additional 300 MW under construction. Wind power generated 8.2 million MWh of electricity in 2022. Solar power is also a significant renewable source, producing 2.2 million MWh of electricity in 2022 and 212 MW operational solar capacity. Last month, the Biden administration’s updated Western Solar Plan added Oregon and four other states to expand solar power projects on federal lands.

In 2021, Oregon passed legislation that required the two largest utilities, Portland General Electric and Pacific Power, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 80 percent below baseline emissions levels by 2030, 90 percent below by 2035, and 100 percent by 2040. In 2022, Oregon’s total greenhouse gas emissions totaled just under 60 million metric tons.

In 2020, the state updated its greenhouse gas emissions targets to reduce at least 45 percent below 1990 levels by 2035 and 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. The state had already missed its 2020 target to reduce emissions by at least 10 percent below 1990 levels. To reach its 2035 emission target, Oregon must cut its current greenhouse gas emissions by more than half.